The present invention relates to vehicle seat moving devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to vehicle seat moving devices that can move a vehicle seat in the longitudinal direction (i.e., the forward and rearward direction) and the lateral direction (i.e., the widthwise direction) of a vehicle in order to rearrange or reposition the vehicle seat.
Various types of vehicle seat moving devices are already known. Such vehicle seat moving devices are taught, for example, by Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-120604.
In the known vehicle seat moving devices, a vehicle floor is provided with a slide groove that is formed therein in a continuous grid-like pattern. The grid-like slide groove is arranged so as to extend in the longitudinal and lateral directions of a vehicle. Conversely, vehicle seats are respectively provided with engagement legs. The engagement legs of the vehicle seats slidably engage the slide groove so that the vehicle seats can move along the slide groove. As a result, the vehicle seats can freely move on the vehicle floor in the longitudinal and lateral directions of the vehicle. Thus, the vehicle seats can be positioned or arranged on the vehicle floor in a wide variety of patterns.
However, in the vehicle seat moving devices thus constructed, the vehicle seats are supported only by the engagement legs. Therefore, it is technically difficult to design the vehicle seats in a manner such that the vehicle seats can be reliably supported on the vehicle floor even if a large load is applied thereto due to a vehicle collision or other such accidents. Generally, in order to increase the support strength of the engagement legs, the engagement legs must be additionally provided with a high-performance locking mechanism or other such rigidifying mechanisms. As a result, the structure of the vehicle seats is complicated. This may lead to an increased manufacturing cost.